Fun and Games 31 of 52
by Echowarrior
Summary: Some Autobots decide to take in some Earth sports, wrangling along a lessthanwilling techie. Their fun is ruined, however, when a pair of Decepticons decide to cause trouble. Meanwhile on Cybertron, a plot is hatched against Starscream.


Fun and Games

A Transformers: Armada Story

By William Rendfeld

Computer systems and software programs were like complex puzzles and buildings; one incorrect bit of information, one foul-up in programming, and you can end up with a disaster of epic proportions. One hole in the system, one flaw, and anyone could come in and tear it apart, or worse, use it to their advantage.

Dealing with these sorts of things, tracking flowing data in real-time, plugging the holes or using them to his advantage, it was his specialty. He wasn't the friendliest or outspoken of Transformers, but when he had a job and knew how to do it, he did it well.

And he enjoyed every klik of it.

"Hey there. You must be new."

But being social wasn't his strong suit.

The lean Seeker sporting Autobot emblems on his wings turned and saluted, slightly jumpy. "Yes sir...I just transferred in two Earth weeks ago."

"I thought you were one of the newbies." The Autobot offered a hand. "Beachcomber. You're Wirejack, right?"

The slate grey jet nodded and accepted the hand, still a bit nervous but slowly relaxing.

"Jetfire's told me some good things about you. You're tech support, right? Computer programming and all that."

Wirejack gave an uneasy laugh. "I dabble, sir."

The blue dune buggy gave a reassuring chuckle. "Well we needed a dabbler around here. Bad enough the occasional human tries hacking into our systems, but every time I check I see more and more of this 'spam' stuff. Like an underground facility run by robots would need aluminum siding from China. If you can stop that, I'll be grateful, same as the rest of us." Their introduction ended, he tilted his head inquisitively. "So, what are you working on?"

The young F-14 Tomcat gestured towards a nearby console mounted on one of Autobase's many steel gray walls, his arm-mounted computer displaying streaming codes. "Glitch in the deployment system. Dozens of them have been cropping up ever since that Scrapmetal attack. I'm just hoping this is the last one."

"Good luck on that." The blue and white operative wasn't tech savvy, but he had at least a grasp of the difficulties involved. "Had much chance to poke around here on Earth?"

The lower-ranking Transformer shook his head. "I've been a bit too busy."

Beachcomber gave the younger Autobot a gentle expression. "You'll get a chance soon enough, don't worry." He walked away, waving as he went. "Take care of yourself kid."

Wirejack waved back with his left hand. "Yes sir. Thank you!" He then turned back to his work, a smile growing on his lips.

* * *

Within the confines of his spacious octagonal office, Starscream sat at his desk, going over reports on a palm computer from his aides over every little topic – economic reports, security records, and everything a senior officer detests to deal with but has to. He had to admit that, for all of Straxus's failings as a military leader, the late leader had done an excellent job of keeping the Decepticon economy in one piece. That most likely explained why Megatron only had support from a few rather than the many; the rest were comfortable with status quo.

However, he became aware of a presence within the office as he went over the reports. He calmly set down his pad, then rose to his feet.

"You may as well come out. Nothing between us except dead air."

A feminine chuckle. "An apt choice of words." The speaker stepped forward, shimmering into view, her black and crimson armor standing out in the brightly-lit office. A long Energon bow was aimed at his chest. "Lord Starscream."

Body tensed, weapon systems coming online. "Flamewar."

The Decepticon femme smiled grimly. "Nothing personal, but I do have my orders."

The assassin opened fire, prompting Starscream to dive away from the explosive projectile that quickly obliterated the chair. He pulled out his own firearm and returned fire around the corner of his desk.

Flamewar dodged in turn, her body escaping damage but weapon becoming damaged in the process, its sensor unit left with its internals exposed and sparks flying out.

Starscream rose to his feet and readied his shoulder cannons. He cast his steely optics upon the Decepticon femme. "This is pointless. Surrender."

"To a Pretender like you?" The ebony motorcycle laughed mockingly. "Never."

A massive blast suddenly tore through the office, demolishing a part of the wall behind Starscream's desk and sending said furniture flying towards the door. The Seeker dropped to the ground on instinct, covered his cranium, and looked up in time to watch Flamewar transformed to vehicle mode and sped out of the opening. He quickly stood up and looked out the open hole as if to chase, but caught no sign of his would-be assassin.

As alarms sounded, the Seeker looked over to his desk, noticing the broken remnants of his palm computer on the ground. He noticed a stray data chip that hadn't been in the office previously, then sighed. "So much for my paperwork."

* * *

"Come on Coby, you made one for yourself. Why can't I get one?"

The elder Hansen brother groaned before he paused cleaning his motorbike. "Bud, I've told you a hundred times already; you can't have one."

"But it'd be so cool! Me, piloting a robot! Like in Gundam or Robotech or, or...or Zoids! Yeah, Zoids!!"

A knock sounded at the garage door, heralding the entrance of their father. "What in blazes are you two arguing about out here?"

"It's nothing Dad, really."

Bud was quick to counter his elder brother's statement with a pout. "Coby won't build me a robot is all."

His father giving him a glance that mixed both curiosity and parental sternness, Coby stood up and relented. "You remember what happened six months ago, with that big attack over near Longs Peak? There was a lot of junk leftover, mostly from those Scrapmetal things. I figured that some of them could be repaired, parts from one used to patch up another, maybe make a controllable mech out of it. So, I made one."

Robert looked at his middle son in disbelief. "You made a piloted, transforming robot out of scraps of transforming robots. By yourself?"

"Well, no. I had help from one of the Autobots, Smokescreen. He helped me patch it together, design the cockpit and computer systems, all that stuff."

An exasperated groan, palming his face. "If only you applied that much effort to your schoolwork. Coby, I know you like hanging out with the Autobots. I don't blame you; they seem like nice people...for machines."

"They aren't that bad Dad," the younger sibling pointed out. "They're nice, really."

"I never said they weren't." He sighed tiredly; he never expected to have to worry about his kids hanging out with mechanical aliens. "Just be careful around them, alright? If either of you got hurt because of them, I don't know what your mother or I would do."

"We'll be fine Dad," Coby assured his father. "Promise."

* * *

Checkpoint moaned as he looked over the damaged office with a critical optic, the portion of his CPU designated for security purposes clocking overtime. One window had been blown out, most of the furnishings destroyed, not to mention potentially sensitive information lost. It was a mess, no other word for it. Yet another spectacular failure to add to the list.

"Looks like she did a number in here."

The ivory Autobot turned to the door, affixing a stern but distant expression upon his subordinate. "You have something to add, Armorhide?"

"I do." The small white semi tractor walked up to his superior, his normally joking expression replaced with a serious one. "This wasn't your fault boss. You couldn't have known about all this."

The security commander turned away. "I could have prevented it."

"Could you?" The smaller Autobot gave his friend a shake. "I've seen her file, same as you. Flamewar's one of the best, a jack of all trades. She could slip in here easily, scramble security systems, and do whatever she wanted. And Starscream's still alive, right? No damage done."

"But what if she'd done it differently?" Checkpoint turned to his junior and bitterly asked, "What if she'd sniped him from a distance, or planted explosives, or whatever?"

The smaller Autobot held his ground. "But she didn't." He huffed, trying to collect his thoughts. "I know it's hard for you to look at this without thinking that you could've done more. But you couldn't. She got in, fine, but she won't do it again, not the same way. Besides, now we have a chance to find her and bring her in for interrogation. This isn't a failure boss, it's an opportunity. The only 'bot who'd think otherwise is dead now, and that speaks volumes right there." He gave an encouraging grin. "We'll get her."

Despite himself, Checkpoint couldn't help but grin in reply. "We'll get her." As the words escaped his vocalizer, the Autobot realized something. He looked about as he voiced his realization, "Why didn't she just snipe him? There are buildings as tall as this one, with far less security. Why get up close and personal? Why take the risk?"

A shrug. "Arrogance maybe? Or desperation?"

The Security Specialist's grin shifted to that of confidence, processors finally settling down after running several quick possibilities. "Or bait."

* * *

Wirejack smiled as the last systems check went through, the glitches cleaned out of the system. His work done, he closed up his arm-mounted computer and disconnected it from the terminal. "Tachi, this is Wirejack. System maintenance on the deployment bay is complete. What's next?"

A feminine voice, the base's computer interface, replied pleasantly. "No computer trouble for the time being, Wirejack. Go ahead and get some rest."

"Done and done." The F-14 Tomcat signed off the comm.-line, and then made his way down the hall back towards the living quarters.

"Hey, Wire - you don't mind that, do you? - got a minute?"

He turned, optics blinking. "Um, sure Beachcomber. What's the problem?"

"No problem kid, just want to give you an invite," the blue dune buggy explained. "You know Coby right? He's going to be taking part in a bike race a little later today. Some of us decided to watch, give him a little moral support. Want to come along?"

The slate grey fighter jet mulled it over; it seemed like a good idea, but something about it was still nagging at him. "Are you sure it'll be safe?"

A dismissive brush at the air. "The humans already know about us right? Besides, it's not like we'll be right there. We'll keep distance, stay out of trouble, just watch. Nothing wrong with that, right? Come on, it'll be fun."

Wirejack considered his options aloud. "Well, I don't have any work left for the time being...and it does sound like fun..."

That was all Beachcomber needed to hear. "Excellent; come on." He grabbed the slimmer Autobot around his shoulders, practically dragging him away.

The initial shock on the younger Autobot's face faded into worry. This was just bound to go wrong.

* * *

"We've made an excellent start, Flamewar. Well done."

The Decepticon femme remained silent as she sat within a secluded corner of an underground chamber, her optics firmly affixed upon a nearby wall.

Obsidian's optics narrowed as he hovered close to his agent. "Is there a problem?"

The ebony motorcycle turned to face her superior. "What was the point in doing that? Breaking into his office just to scuffle with him, then run off? If I'd slagged him, snuck off without anyone noticing, fine, no problem, but announcing myself like that? What did that do?"

"It sent a message." The two turned to face Tankor as he stepped forward. "We may be on the run, but we can still enter, strike, and leave at our leisure. Our actions instilled terror, young one. That was the objective."

The assassin trained her gaze on the massive dull yellow Transformer for several nano-kliks before turning away. "I still think my way would be smarter."

The deep blue helicopter took on a regal bearing. "These are perilous times for us. We must do now what must be done for the cause. Starscream will be dealt with in time, by Megatron, and then Cybertron will be ours. For now, we must concentrate on weakening his standing; the destruction of a unit of Decepticons while attempting to apprehend you will be most sufficient...especially as there is no way for Starscream to not escape the scorn, if not the injury."

Flamewar didn't respond; arguing with them was pointless. Despite her misgivings about their decisions, however, she hoped that they were right.

* * *

"Bait?"

"Bait."

Starscream cast a critical glance at the ivory Autobot before him. "Flamewar showing up in my office and squandering her chance to blast me into scrap was just bait? No offense, but I'd think Tankor and Obsidian could come up with something better."

"There's an Earth philosopher who said that in order to win a battle, you had to know yourself and your enemy." Checkpoint laid down before the Decepticon leader a data pad displaying information on Tankor, Obsidian and Flamewar. "They know their strengths, what they can do and what they can't. But they don't know ours, at least not as well as they'd think."

The blue and grey jet leaned back in his chair, his back brushing against the steel grey wall of his secondary office. "Then that was supposed to make me react, lead me into some sort of trap?"

The Autobot Security Specialist nodded. "They were advising Straxus, not dealing with you or Megatron directly. They only know you by the reputation you had as a traitor to your brothers and your combat prowess. They don't know how you'd think; the only guess they have is that you'd try to deal with them yourself."

A smirk grew on Starscream's face. "In my zeal not to make the mistakes of my predecessor?" He picked up the computer pad and admitted, "I'd do just that, but I wouldn't go alone. I'd take help."

"And that might be what they'd want. We took a look at that data chip; it's a map to a nearby warehouse near the boundary line. I'm betting they want to box you in, take out your backup, maybe with explosives or a precision strike from a distance. Flamewar's worked with explosives, sharpshooting, the works; she could put something like that together, do the job just right so that you'd get out and everyone else wouldn't." Checkpoint crossed his arms as he finished, "I don't know about you, but leading 'bots into a slaughter is the last thing I'd want the guy in charge to do."

"So what do you recommend we do?" A segment of Starscream's brow rose as he leveled his optics at the Autobot before him. "Not take the bait?"

"Actually, we thought we'd give them what they wanted."

Starscream watched in surprise and Checkpoint with confidence as a blue and white Autobot with racing insignia over his body appeared before them in a shimmer out of thin air. "Starscream," the mech spoke politely, nodding his head in deference to rank.

"Mirage." The Decepticon leader turned to the Autobot security officer, rising to his feet. "They want us in their trap. Fine. Then let's spring it."

* * *

Eager crowds gathered, concession stands selling food and drink as the local human population readied themselves to enjoy a little motocross racing. The sun was shining, the winds were gentle and light, and the weather was perfect for a little outdoor fun.

As he made final preparations on his bike within a small tent, Coby caught the sound of car engines revving. He dismissed it until his brother cried out, "Bro, it's the 'Bots!"

Surprise growing on his face, the teen hurriedly set aside his tools and rushed out of the tent just as a familiar dune buggy and Nissan Skyline pulled up. "What are you guys doing here?"

The familiar motorcycle Mini-Con popped out of a compartment within his partner as he transformed. "We decided to be a little adventurous," Nightbeat explained, his own eagerness barely contained.

"Plus we figured Wire needed some time outdoors," Beachcomber explained as a F-14 slowly flew in above them, transforming into a robot upon landing and then kneeling closer to the humans' level.

For his part, the Tomcat gave a weak smile. "Hey Coby. Good luck with the race."

Coby smiled appreciatively as his brother looked upon the Autobot jet in a mixture of awe and surprise. "Thanks Wirejack."

"Wirejack?" Bud echoed, curiosity all but restrained in his eyes and body. "Why do you look like Starscream? I mean, you're almost identical."

The computer tech looked at the young human, a little surprised by the question. "Well, it's sort of complicated...you know how there are general makes and models for vehicles here on Earth? It's the same with us; many Autobots, Decepticons and Mini-Cons share similar body types. It saves time building new bodies if you have a basic design to work from, rather than building from scratch."

"Oh, I get it." The youngest Hansen continued to look at the slate gray Transformer appraisingly before he declared, "That's pretty cool! Are there more like you, Autobot Seekers I mean?"

"Bud, come on," middle Hansen chided his sibling when he noticed the jet flinch slightly at the words "Autobot Seeker". "You'll make the guy nervous. You just go and find Dad and everyone; I'll see you out on the track."

Bud shot his brother a look that was a mix of annoyance and amusement. "Spoil my fun, will ya?" He rushed off, waving to the Autobots as he went. "Later guys!"

Wirejack waved after him before Coby regained his attention. "By the way Wire, thanks for your help with the Scrapmetal's OS. It worked perfectly."

The Autobot programmer smiled again, this time with a hint of pride. "It wasn't much. All I did was adapt the software from one of your flight simulators and..."

A rev from Sideswipe's engine regained his attention. "'Jack, I'd hate to break up the tech geek session, but Coby's got a race to win. You'd better get airborne before someone spots you."

A nervous laugh upon realizing that little detail. "Right." He looked down and said, "Good luck Coby," before transforming back to fighter mode and swiftly ascending into the air.

As Coby rushed to get his bike ready, Wirejack took in the track, the number of humans gathered, and the surrounding area. They were enjoying themselves just as much as the other Autobots were, and he couldn't help but feel a little eager to see the race himself. He just hoped that nothing would go wrong.

* * *

Something, of course, was about to go tremendously wrong.

The peace and tranquility of Rocky Mountain National Park was shattered as, in a brilliant flash of light and sound, a pair of Transformers skidded to a halt on the ground, frightening away various woodland creatures and generating an all-out panic as they ended up flat on their chests.

The smaller of the two, with deep red armor highlighted with black and silver, picked himself up first in a stagger as his gyros restabilized. "Remind me again whose bright idea that was to jump into an open Space Bridge portal?"

"It was yours, Ransack," his larger companion replied, his armor varying shades of off-white and green and his arms bulky like those of a great ape. Both hands clutched his head, waiting for the diagnostics to stop flashing and the world to stop spinning. "You said Gasket was chasing after us and..."

Ransack snapped back viciously. "That was a rhetorical statement, CZ! Rhetorical!" As his larger companion became downcast, he quickly changed his tone. "Hey, don't get like that, okay Crumplezone? I didn't mean nuthin', honest. Just got all frazzled is all by the rough landing."

The emerald Decepticon's expression brightened considerably. "I know Ransack. Just frazzled." He looked around, taking in the local flora. "So...where on Velocitron are we?"

"I don't think we're on Velocitron anymore, CZ." The scarlet mech stepped forward, testing out his joints for damage and running an internal scan. "Maybe we got knocked to Animatros or somewhere."

"But Animatros doesn't have these fuzzy things." The emerald mech, of course, referred to a particularly nonplussed rabbit, that hopped back into the area vacated by the other animals. He chuckled to himself. "They remind me of petrorabbits."

"Yeah, that's nice and all." The tiny mech transformed to his motorcycle mode and called, "C'mon CZ, let's get our bearings."

Crumplezone turned his attention away from the tiny rabbit reluctantly, then transformed to his three-wheeled vehicle mode as Ransack sped off, finally scaring away the hopping mammal. He followed, waving goodbye with one of his rear flaps to the bunny as he sped along and accompanied his partner down a long and rocky trail.

As they went along, the familiar sounds of motors captured the attention of their sensors. "You hear that, CZ? Engines! Sweet Energon, we're close to civilization!"

The larger Transformer barely contained a whoop as they arrived at the outskirts of the park, overlooking the race being held nearby.

"You see that? It's a race!"

"A fleshy race. Hey CZ, look down there...ain't those Autobots?"

"I think so. Why?"

"'Cuz we got an Autobot to thank for us being stuck on this planet of green things and hopping mammal fleshies...and I think we should show our appreciation..."

* * *

As he flew high above the motocross race, his sensors straining to pick up what was going on below, Wirejack couldn't help but enjoy himself. Sure, he'd been dragged out here, almost against his will...but he was flying now. And as uneasy as he was in being outside of his element, he couldn't help but enjoy himself when he was in the air, high above everything else; the rocks, the trees, the colorful motorbikes, the cackling tri-wheeled dragster and empty red motorcycle...

...wait a nano...

The Tomcat's scanners were swiftly redirected. Two unusual looking vehicles with Decepticon spark signatures were barreling down towards the gathering below, with no sign of stopping.

He'd called it; things had gotten worse.

"Beachcomber, this is Wirejack! I'm reading a pair of Decepticons heading your way, coming in hot!"

"Decepticons? How could...?"

Twin flashes of red light pulsed out from the two Decepticons, and the larger of the two opened fire, blasting on Beachcomber and Sideswipe's position. Both Autobots and Mini-Con switched to robot mode as their new guests slowed and transformed while the gathered humans took notice.

"Yo, Autobots! Prepare for trouble!"

"And make it double!"

The two continued to pose in a manner both dramatic and comical, Ransack continuing their introduction. "Presenting their esteemed greatnesses, the Gruesome Twosome, the Diabolical Duo, the Bad Boys of Velocitron, Ransack...!"

"...And Crumplezone! That's right!"

Autobots and Mini-Con looked to one another in disbelief.

"You heard of these guys before?" Sideswipe asked, only to get a shrug in reply from Beachcomber and Nightbeat

"Hey, no one shrugs us off!" Ransack took aim with his twin-barreled cannon and fired, knocking Beachcomber to the ground.

The blue Autobot wasn't daunted as he returned to his feet and hollered, "Everyone run for it! Get to safety!" As the few humans who hadn't already departed did so, he called out to the two Decepticons, "You want to cause trouble? Fine, but we pick the place!" He then transformed back to vehicle mode, driving away at top speed with Sideswipe transforming and following behind, his partner linking up as he did so.

Ransack smiled in delight. "Look at that, CZ, they're runnin' scared!"

"We gonna chase 'em?" came the enthusiastic reply.

"Of course we are!"

The two promptly transformed back to vehicle mode and gave chase as their quarry made their way back towards the Autobot base.

* * *

High above, Wirejack did what he did best and could for the moment; he interfaced, having at least the ID of the two Decepticon troublemakers.

"Tachi, this is Wirejack. I need data records, stat!"

"You're going to need to specify what records Wirejack," came the pleasant feminine reply, now sounding slightly annoyed.

"Velocitron population listings, Decepticons Ransack and Crumplezone. And while you're at it, tell Scavenger we've got a situation out here!" A stray shot that just barely grazed his tailfins almost caused him to spin out of control, although it didn't stop him from letting loose a panicked yelp. "Talk later!"

* * *

The trio rolled their way across the streets of Kaon, traffic moving aside and eventually thinning out as they made their way towards the warehouse district. Directly above them and keeping pace flew Starscream, his jet mode glistening in the light of day.

"Drag Strip, Blackjack, Battletrap, keep close," the Decepticon leader commanded. "We're coming up on target."

Their engines firing, the four arrived at a small domed warehouse, a layer of dust over the main entrance testifying to its lack of use. One of the three vehicles fired a blast at the doors, allowing the three cars entry as Starscream blasted in, transforming to robot mode in the process.

"Come out, Flamewar." The blue and gray Seeker landed, brandishing his sword defensively. "Surrender, and no harm will come to you."

A low laugh from the shadows. Their quarry stepped forward, a remote detonator in one hand and her Energon bow in the other. "Sorry to disappoint, but I don't plan on surrender. As for all of you, well...have a blast."

She activated the remote, and explosions tore through the air. The Decepticon femme, however, was the only one to react in surprise, as the explosions did not tear through the entire structure at key points, but instead at the building's roof, blowing it open and letting in the sun. She growled as she realized that Tankor and Obsidian's strategy had been figured out, and she'd take the fall.

But how did they move the bombs without her noticing?

"Amazing thing about illusions," a voice began. She turned about as an Autobot appeared, a nearby 'explosive' fading away into nothingness as he finished, "They're always so convincing."

She opened fire, Mirage barely dodging, then transformed and wheeled away, blowing through the opened entrance with amazing speed.

The three 'Decepticons' transformed to robot mode, their disguises falling apart.

"We are NEVER doing that again." Armorhide quickly tossed away the remnants of his Blackjack costume with a disgusted look and without restraint. "It was getting uncomfortable in those things."

"And here I thought you were complaining about that 'blast' comment," Prowl chuckled as he plucked off the remains of his Drag Strip shell.

The tiny Autobot managed a smirk. "That too."

Checkpoint brushed off the last of his costume as he activated his comm.-link. "Bots, begin Phase Two."

* * *

Flamewar sped along the streets of Kaon, weaving her way through traffic towards the bridge that led out of the district. She desperately hoped that she'd be able to escape with the many upgrades she'd received over the years, despite her engines whining loudly.

"C'mon...don't fail me now..."

Her upgrades didn't get a chance to fail her as the bridge disconnected, one half of it receding into the distant state across the border line. She barely had time to curse her luck before she went flying off the edge, a four-pronged claw grabbing her as she transformed to robot mode.

As the Decepticon femme took aim at her captor, a voice cried out, "I wouldn't!" She looked in the distance to see a familiar red Autobot sniper, his long gun trained on her weapon.

The red and white helicopter holding her firm chuckled happily. "Looks like Checkpoint's plan worked like a charm. Not bad, if I do say so myself. Nice work Landquake; we got her."

"Fine, you got me. Just put me down, alright?" Flamewar huffed. "The perfect end to a bad day."

* * *

His engines running at the max, Beachcomber drove along the rocky trails back towards the Autobot base, Sideswipe close behind and their Decepticon opponents trailing them.

"This doesn't make any sense." The blue sedan wobbled on the terrain as he went, trying his best to keep from getting damaged in his high-speed configuration between the rocky ground and their attackers. Nissan Skylines weren't built for off-roading and he knew his undercarriage was going to be a mess. "How did those two glitches get here?"

"Don't know, don't care. All I'm concerned with is getting them away from the humans. Then we'll send these two packing."

From a short distance back, Crumplezone chortled. "We got 'em running scared, Ransack! Let's give 'em somethin' to remember!"

His small friend made a joyful yell. "CZ you took the words right outta my vocalizer!" The crimson motorcycle then transformed to robot mode, activated his Cyber Key after landing on top of his partner and then opened fire on their Autobot quarry.

The blast from Ransack's gun sent Sideswipe flying and crashing into a nearby rock face, his windows shattering upon impact and his armor giving out a loud crunch. Nightbeat immediately detached and hid himself near his partner, all the while relaying back to Autobase. Beachcomber noticed, transforming and returning fire with his back-mounted guns.

Amazingly enough, Crumplezone was able to dodge, inadvertently causing Ransack to fly off of the larger Transformer. The small Decepticon transformed back into vehicle mode as his larger friend slammed into the Autobot, sending the blue dune buggy flying and rolling onto his back.

The two Decepticons transformed and gazed happily upon the carnage they'd wrought.

"Aww, Autobots fall down, go boom," the crimson motorcycle said mockingly.

"Let's prop 'em up on the rocks so we can blast 'em some more!" the emerald three-wheeled racer suggested gleefully.

"Both of you, stop this!" The two Decepticons looked up in surprise as Wirejack dived in and transformed, taking a fighting stance as he landed. "You've caused enough damage for one day."

The two Decepticons stared at the jet bearing Autobot symbols before breaking into hysterical laughter. "You think we'd listen to some scrawny little Autobot Seeker?"

"Yeah, scrawny!"

Wirejack narrowed his eyes; being referred to as 'scrawny' didn't bother him as much as the "Autobot Seeker" jibe did in that tone. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

The small Decepticon gave the jet a derisive snort. "Pfft. Don't make me laugh."

"But he already made us laugh Ransack..." Crumplezone pointed out

"Figure of speech CZ, now go pummel him!"

The large emerald mech flexed his fingers, his optics taking on a gleeful glint as he stepped forward. "With pleasure." He then rushed towards the smaller mech, his arms spread wide and his hands balled into fists.

Just as Crumplezone closed on his target, Wirejack jumped, nimbly flipping over the startled Velocitronian. As he regained his footing, the emerald Decepticon turned around, swinging one of his massive arms down on the hacker with a roar. The F-14 easily anticipated the move by catching the arm and redirected the larger mech's momentum, sending Velocitronian native flying towards a nearby rock face.

Wirejack barely had enough time to check his systems for any physical strain from the counterattack before he heard the angry thrum of an engine behind him. He turned in time to see Ransack barreling towards him with a loud yell and simply weaved aside, leaving the small motorcycle to crash into the same rock face. The sudden impact actually forced him into transforming and several weak protests were garbled out before the diminutive Decepticon slipped into stasis lock.

The sound of the crash caught Crumplezone's attention, prompting a furious howl. "No one hurts my little buddy!"

If Wirejack was fazed by this, he showed little sign besides gritting his dental plates. "Cyber Key, LOCK!" A light lanced out of him, then back into a slot on his back, releasing a silver and white flash as his twin thrusters flipped to face forward, the familiar crackle of blue electricity forming at their tips as they were leveled at the charging Decepticon. "Ampere Storm!"

The large discharge of highly excited protons and electrons shot through Crumplezone's body for a few short nano-kliks before he stumbled back from the massive surge. His optics a swirl and completely disoriented, he eventually collapsed onto the ground after staggering for several moments.

"Tell me 'bout the petrorabbits 'gain, Ransack..." the dragster slurred groggily, struggling to sit up straight. Jarred by his and Ransack's collisions, a large part of the cliff broke loose and crashed on top of him. "Owww..."

Wirejack huffed with relief, then managed a small, but satisfied, smirk. "Flattened out."

* * *

"Flamewar has been taken," Obsidian reported unhappily. "The Autobots have her now."

"A shame," Tankor murmured from within their dark new hideout. "She was an excellent soldier. Still, the sacrifice was necessary. She is no longer our concern."

"Yes, but now we are without support, without troops." The blue helicopter turned to his ally, concern barely on his face. "To whom do we turn now?"

A massive blast answered his question. The two covered their optics, then turned back as the dust settled around them. A gentle chuckle faded in, followed by a familiar feminine form with a cannon adorning one arm.

"Isn't it obvious, dears?" Terrablast smiled confidently. "You come to me."

* * *

"And these two just popped out of nowhere?"

"Yes sir." Wirejack gave a glance to the prone forms of the two Decepticons as Overhaul pushed aside the boulders keeping them pinned, then turned back to Scavenger and elaborated, "They just attacked Beachcomber, Sideswipe and Nightbeat without warning. I spotted them from the air, and we managed to get them away from the humans without anyone getting hurt."

"And you took them down." Scavenger barely suppressed a smile, but the slate grey jet noticed a glimmer of mirth in his optics. "I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen all this. Almost makes the nightmare I'm going to have with the press worth it." The green and purple bulldozer regained his composure, his stern visage replacing amusement "Return to base and get yourself cleaned up, Wirejack. We'll handle things from here."

"Aye sir."

Scavenger moved off to help prop up Crumplezone, leaving Wirejack alone to resettle his fuel pump. To hear praise from one who taught Optimus how to battle was something he hadn't expected since arriving on Earth. Maybe congratulations from Jetfire or fellow techies, but never the powerful academy instructor.

"Hey kid, wait a second." The Tomcat turned to find his escorts walking towards him, amazed looks on their faces. "That was some impressive stuff back there," the dune buggy admitted.

The Nissan was slightly more energetic about it. "I'll say. You kicked their afts!"

The young Autobot scratched the back of his helm sheepishly, a behavior he'd picked up from Coby. "Well...you'd do the same for me right?"

"Of course. Friends look out for each other," Nightbeat chirped from his partner's shoulder.

Wirejack smiled. He gave a soft "Thanks" before transforming and flying back to base. Despite all the insanity, he had to admit...today hadn't been a bad day.

The End


End file.
